The vessel will be equipped with the newest oceanographic equipment for acoustical, biological, physical and geophysical surveys. It will have a set of unmanned and manned deep-water submersible vehicles like “Mir”, “Rus” and “Consul.” In addition to research missions, the submersibles will be used for rescue operations.

The vessel was launched at the Yantar Shipyard in Kaliningrad on December 5. after two and a half years of construction.

The vessel, which will be called “Yantar” in honor of the shipyard where it was built, is scheduled for completion in 2013. It will then undergo sea trials before being commissioned into service with the Northern Fleet in 2014, Port News writes.

“Yantar” is 107,8 meters long. It has a displacement of 5200 tons, a range of 8000 nautical miles and a crew of 60, according to Russian-ships.info.

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